


when i'm no longer

by songfic_suites



Category: True Blood
Genre: F/M, Post-Season 6 AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-06
Updated: 2013-08-06
Packaged: 2017-12-22 14:35:23
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/914339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/songfic_suites/pseuds/songfic_suites
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>She checked herself over in the mirror once more for tell-tale pocket bulges and realized her wrinkles vanished in the power she believed she possessed in her armor. A knock at the door, one more glance over and Sookie felt prepared to face Bill.</p>
            </blockquote>





	when i'm no longer

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I own nothing in relation to the True Blood series, it's characters, or its storylines.

Disclaimer: Don't own anything. For entertainment purposes only. 

 

_"Will you still love me, when I'm no longer, young and beautiful?" -Young and Beautiful by Lana Del Rey_

 

The years had not been kind to Sookie. 

Standing barefoot, dripping water on the cold, wet tile and wiping steam off the mirror, Sookie stared at her reflection noticing her first wrinkle. A small fold of skin just beside her eyes that she attempted to smooth but it stayed. A wrinkle. A fucking wrinkle—scratch that—two wrinkles because apparently they came in matching pairs. Proof she had done some laughing and living, her grandma would’ve said but in her mind they shouted “Sookie’s finally aging!” She sighed and turned to open the bathroom door letting the wind of the hotel air conditioner waft in over her back. 

She was only thirty-two. 

To be fair, a lot had happened to Sookie in the past few years. She had been stabbed, bitten, kidnapped, traded, and rescued who knew how many times. When her eyes drifted down, she saw the ragged bite marks dotting down her chest that never healed properly and the one in her bicep. There was a jagged line from a knife held to her neck a couple years back, and after that group fang-bang a sick Human Rights fangirl threw her into, perhaps a couple folds of skin wasn’t the worst mark on her body. However, she would never again take her clothes off for someone who was not a vampire or a soldier. She learned that the hard way. 

After drying her hair, she slipped into some light leather clothes. Erik introduced her to an old fashion designer, now working for the cause, who made the lightest leather to ever exist. The shirt was a muted white and the pants were fitted and black but her favorite piece was the jacket. It was also black, allowing her to zip it and blend in if need be, but it came with a hard collar that stood up around her neck and the edges curved down over the base of her neck. It wasn’t complete protection but it was enough of a deterrent to give her time to blast any vamp that got too close. An added plus was the invisible inner pockets that held a silver/acid mix spray and various other pocket pistols and stakes. She checked herself over in the mirror once more for tell-tale pocket bulges and realized her wrinkles vanished in the power she believed she possessed in her armor. A knock at the door, one more glance over and Sookie felt prepared to face Bill. 

~*~*~*~*~

In the back of a human club, in the dim red VIP room with small square tables pushed together to shape a rectangle, Sookie entered quietly, the hostess holding open the door before slipping away. Judging by the muffled mutters from the humans and the silence from the vamps, the meeting hadn’t started but she felt Bill’s eyes on her before she met his. 

He had lost more weight since she had seen him last. His arms bulged more but his cheeks were hollow. _Was he on something?_ She’d have to ask Eric later. Bill caught her scanning his body, his eyebrow raised but he didn’t turn away from his assistant’s conversation. Sookie turned away first, giving no reaction at being caught checking out Bill and pulled out the chair beside Eric, proud that at least on the outside she no longer gave away her emotions that easily. She wasn’t afraid of Bill with his legion of worshippers and Vampire Bible thumpers. She wasn’t even afraid of the pull that used to be between them because the pull no longer existed. They were no longer a girl and a mysterious guy waiting for their life to change in Bon Temps.

“Glad you could make it dear,” Eric said quietly as Sookie sat down.

“Fuck off,” she muttered, smiling. He smiled back before their faces fell into blank expressions. They weren’t “together” anymore either and she no longer felt she was strong enough to do the whole “interspecies” dating thing, but Eric taught her a lot in the early days of government fracture. He finally convinced her of the reality of vampire social rules and he shocked her with his willingness to find new ways of living together with humans. Under the table, he covered her hand with his and squeezed and Sookie allowed herself to squeeze back before pulling away.

She knew Bill was listening, however. For all she knew, he could’ve seen them hold hands under the table. It didn’t matter. That Bill was gone.

Six years and she’s still reminding herself that a psychotic vamp god is wearing her old boyfriend’s face.

“Now that everyone is here, let’s get started,” Eric said.

~*~*~*~

Sookie said nothing throughout the whole meeting. In fact, she spent a lot of time staring at Bill because (1) She couldn’t read his mind and everyone at the table knew it, therefore she was visibly not trying to read any of Bill’s human bodyguard’s minds and (2) Sookie got a small thrill at being able to unnerve Bill just a little. 

It wasn’t perceptible, not to the human eye at least, but you don’t give your body and heart to a man and not remember a few things about him. Like the fact that he used to cup his thigh when he was nervous. Currently one hand was above the table and the other was underneath, his arm slightly tense. Inwardly, Sookie smiled.

The meeting wrapped up rather quickly. There were no real terms to be debated, just the ceremony. The Human Rights League had become too powerful for the two sides to continue bickering with each other and pick each other off. By the end, Bill and Eric actually stood and shook hands, agreeing that the Vampire Authority and the Union, a coalition of vamps, humans, weres and shifters, would join forces. Sookie looked away from their handshake, keeping her misgivings about the Authority to herself. 

Bill had made a name for himself attracting every crazed Lilith worshipper with the promise that the earth was for vampires while Eric had made quite a few enemies offering to fight with humans and other supernaturals to survive together. Eric had found a way to become compromising but Sookie was unsure about Bill. She didn’t trust anything she couldn’t stake.

As she stood up, she knew Bill was waiting for the others to leave. She hadn’t been alone in a room with him since he showed up at her house, hemmed her brother up near the ceiling and asked for her blood. He’d said she was dead to him. Yet he was clearly taking his time gathering up his notes and papers, slipping them into his briefcase, one by one. 

Eric leaned over, “Do you need me to stay?” he asked.

Bill paused slightly in his paper shuffling. 

“No,” she said quietly. “But thank you.”

Eric looked at her, towering but lowering his head trying to meet her level, “Are you sure?”

She nodded and Eric took Pam and Tara out of the room. Tara touched her arm, smiling softly before following Pam and closing the door behind her. 

Bill snapped his briefcase closed.

“How are you?” he asked.

“Fine.”

Sookie studied his hand on the briefcase. Picking it up, placing it in front of his body, a sign of nervousness, she noted. As part of her training, Eric had her learn from body language experts, both human and vampire. She couldn’t read their minds but body language was universal. Covering the groin meant feeling vulnerable, and the way Bill held the briefcase close to him but planted in front of his waist said more than he probably wanted.

“And you,” she added, realizing she was reading him silently. 

He moved the briefcase to his side, standing taller and letting his arms hang. Confidence.

“I’m well, thank you,” he said.

They paused. She couldn’t tell if they were sizing each other up or just appreciating what six years had done to both of them. He hadn’t aged but remembering the wrinkles she noticed earlier, she remembered she had. Something inside her twisted a little. In fact, she looked more like someone his own age now than she did when they first got together. 

“Why are we being so polite?” he asked smiling. “I seem to recall you having plenty of words for me the last time we met.”

“And I seem to recall being dead to you the last time we talked. But I guess with being the new Vampire Authority, talking to dead people’s your job now,” she said.

He laughed, surprisingly. The laugh shook his shoulders, reminding her of how his laugh felt under cheek and Sookie mentally slapped herself. Bill died. Her Bill Compton exploded into a pile of gooey blood and liquefied parts and standing before her was a crazy, unpredictable hell god/psycho vamp in his place. 

“What do you want Bill?” she said, crossing her arms in front of herself. 

Bill noted this, clearly reading her too. Body language wasn’t exactly a state secret, but Sookie didn’t bother altering her pose. She had done her job, checked Bill’s humans and found nothing alluding to betrayal of any kind. She wanted the fuck out of this tiny room.

“I just,” he paused, pressing his lips together and tapping his hand on his briefcase. “I just wanted to know how you’d been, that’s all.” He edged around the short end of the tables, coming up to Sookie slowly and cautiously.

“I don’t mean you any harm Sookie.”

“That’s not how I remember things,” she said tightly. “Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to get out of here while we still can.”

Knock knock. They froze. Bill immediately edged his body in front of hers. She heard his fangs click and she couldn’t help rolling her eyes.

“Get a grip,” she muttered, grabbing his shoulder and forcing him to turn around. Quickly, she slid open her jacket first, pulling her shirt out of her pants before reaching for his. He leaned back, pushing away her hands, but Sookie was undeterred. She grabbed around the waist of his pants, ripped out his shirt, slide one hand up his back and pulled his lips to hers with the other.

And he froze.

 _C’mon Bill_ , she chanted silently. This wasn’t going to work if it looked like she was molesting him. 

Then she felt his hands on her waist, one hand sliding up to the center of her back, and his mouth opened slowly, taking her lower lip between his. She groaned slightly, leaning into him, realizing momentarily that his fangs had slid back. The door opened behind him but Sookie pretended to focus on Bill’s tongue sweeping into her mouth.

“Ahem.”

Bill pulled away and turned, revealing Sookie and her probably swollen lips. She reached up and pretended to wipe some nonexistent lipstick off the edge of his mouth. 

“Can we help you?” Bill asked.

A small girl, wearing a black apron tied around her waist and a crisp white button-down, stood slightly irritated in the doorway. 

“We were told your party was done with this room,” she said. “We have other guests waiting.”

“We are so sorry,” Sookie said, exaggerating her accent.

Bill followed suit. “We sure are ma’am. We just ain’t see each other in a while and,” he looked down at Sookie, smiling wide, “I’m sure you know how that is.”

The hostess smiled but not with her eyes. “We need the room,” she said flatly.

Sookie and Bill smiled, disheveled and embarrassed, and struggled to hold back giggles as Bill grabbed his briefcase, slid his arm under Sookie’s and steered them out of the club. A couple people stared but not intensely. However, Bill pushed on Sookie’s back until she had to slow them down slightly. They should be seen hurrying as if they can’t wait to get to the hotel, not running from the cops. Once they were outside, Sookie stepped away but Bill followed, backing her up against a light post.

“You can stop now,” Sookie said, pushing at his chest with her palms.

Bill smiled. “The hostess might be looking through the window.”

Sookie paused and let her hands rest. There was no heartbeat under her palms and it was all feeling a little too familiar. 

“Any bright ideas as to how to get out of here?” she asked.

Bill pressed his pelvis to hers and Sookie froze.

“Where is Eric meeting you?” he asked.

“You know I can’t tell you that.”

“What? I thought we were all friends now.”

“Business partners,” she corrected. “We have shared goals.”

“And when those goals are met?”

She looked into the street, noting the passerbys who smiled at them and some who tried too hard to ignore them. She looked into his eyes, felt the cold skin of his neck and placed a hand on his cheek. 

“This isn’t Bon Temps,” she said.

“And if it were?”

“It’s never gonna be,” she said. “Ever again.”

He nodded, looking down between them before leaning in and pressing his lips softly to hers. Sookie sighed and Bill took the opportunity to slip his tongue past her lips. It’s for show, she reminded herself but her mouth and body were noticing things she had forgotten she knew about him. Like how he no longer tasted like pennies. She was so focused on not getting caught earlier she didn’t notice the faint edge of mint on his breath, the firmness of his shoulders, his subtle ability to wedge a knee between hers before she realized he’d moved. His hand was back under her jacket, slipping under shirt, cool and splayed against her skin and Sookie began to pull back. However, Bill followed, pulling her lower half to press against his. Whatever show they were putting on, Bill was going for gold.

Suddenly he pulled back and pressed his cheek to hers.

“You’re right, this isn’t Bon Temps,” he whispered in her ear.

Sookie bit her lip. 

He backed away, smiling softly and holding her hand until the last moment. She smiled back, watching him turn disappear into the crowd. She waited a moment, smiling to herself in case anyone was watching and headed in the opposite direction. 

She would take a few pointless turns to see who was following her, then take a roundabout way out of the city. Her I.D. was good until six a.m. and she wasn’t trying to be within city walls when it expired. 

But as she walked through the city, stepping around people and barely checking for a tail she occasionally brushed her lips with her fingers. 

_It felt the same_ , she thought. Time had dulled nothing.

 _A convincing performance_ , she reminded herself. Everything was show and every move forced a reaction that revealed something.

And he wasn’t her Bill. 

Bill had died long ago.


End file.
